Mud and Knives
by DreamSprite
Summary: Instead of Commander Taylor, Lt. Washington was went out to the outpost with Dr. Shannon in the episode What Remains and infected with the memory virus.


Don't own, life sucks like that.

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><p>He had been pacing his office waiting to hear back from the outpost when a soft thud just outside one of the windows caught his attention. Peering out Taylor saw the crumpled body of one of his soldiers on the deck. Taking a step back he reached for his radio but a sharp blade to this throat stopped him. A blow to the back of his knees brought him down and the change in position caused the knife to cut into his skin just enough for a few drops of blood to spill. His attacker circled around to his front and removed the knife only to replace it with a sonic pistol aimed directly between his eyebrows.<p>

The shock was probably clear on his face but Taylor didn't think to try and hide it. It wasn't every day his Lieutenant attacked him.

"Wash?"

Her face and arms had been smeared with mud to help her blend in with the shadows. Her hair was twisted into a tight knot at the base of her neck and secured so not a strand was out of place. Her eyes were slightly unfocused and he could see confusion at his use of her nickname.

"Sir?"

She didn't lower her weapon as she looked him up and down. When she was finished with her inspection her eyes narrowed and he heard the whine of the gun as it charged to fire.

"Your intell needs some work, the Captain doesn't have a beard and only his temples are gray."

Washington didn't give him time to wonder why she was using his old rank as she pulled the trigger without so much as a blink. Rolling to the left Taylor jumped to his feet and rushed forward, knocking the gun out of her hand before she could try to shoot him again. Without missing a beat she ducked under his arm and delivered two quick jabs to his side before moving across the office. Ignoring the pain in his ribs Taylor shrugged off his jacket and rolled his shoulders to loosen his limbs. He didn't miss the way she quirked an eyebrow at the action.

"Maybe your information wasn't as bad as I thought."

She ran at him, ducking under his guard to land a right hook that left him seeing stars. Reaching out he caught her elbow and tried to use his superior strength to pin her against his chest but with a slight twist she was out of his hold before he could lock his arms around her. Dropping low she kicked out, sweeping his legs out from under him as she did so. The wind was knocked out of him but years of fighting forced him to move out of the way as her booted foot came down. Grabbing her ankle he twisted it and only felt a small amount of guilt at her pained cry. Pulling her foot free she limped a few steps back, breathing heavily but still on guard she watched him climb to his feet.

"Damnit Wash, what the hell is wrong with you?"

"Nothing _Sir_."

She spat his title as if it left a foul taste in his mouth as her hand went to her belt. Gripping the same knife that had been pressed to his throat earlier she came at him again, Taylor was surprised at the fury behind the attack and quickly found himself on the defensive. Hissing at a sudden pain in his shoulder he took hold of her wrist before it could finish its downward path across his chest. Appling pressure to the base of her thumb he forced her to drop the knife. With one hand still gripping her wrist he caught her other fist as it made a swipe at his face. She tried to free her hands but when she realized he wasn't going to let go she used his hold as an anchor as she shifted one foot behind his knee to bring him down for a third time.

It worked but not in the way she intended.

Twisting midway down the two landed with Washington on her back looking up at Taylor as he used his heavier build to pin her down.

"Nice try Wash but I'm the one who taught you that move."

She glared at him and opened her mouth to speak but whatever she was going to say was lost when two pairs of hurried footsteps were heard coming up the stairs. The door was thrown open, the first through was Maddy Shannon and right behind her was a nervous looking Corporal Reynolds. The oldest Shannon daughter began to say something but Taylor interrupted her.

"Reynolds, get over here and help me hold her down. Shannon go to the Clinic and bring back a medic, tell them to bring sedatives."

By the time Maddy returned with a doctor Washington had calmed down to the point where it wasn't a fight to keep her still. The moment she saw the needle however she began thrashing, head-butting and even biting in her struggle to get away. She nearly broke free but the doctor Maddy had brought was quick to deliver the shot.

Before she passed out Washington called Taylor a miserable bastard. It the situation hadn't been so serious he would have chucked.

When she came to the next day he was standing by bedside with an anxious look on his face.

"Commander?"

He visibly relaxed at the use of his rank, his correct rank.

"You scared the hell out of me Wash, how are you feeling?"

"Like I went a couple rounds with a carno."

Pushing herself into a sitting position she groaned at the soreness in her limbs.

"What happened sir?"

"Memory virus, at least that's what the scientists have decided to call it."

Her eyes swept over his face, locking onto the split lip and black eye. Remorse filled her gaze at his injury's.

"I'm sorry for attacking you sir."

Reaching up be rubbed his jaw, the grin on his face was almost proud.

"Don't worry about it Wash. You weren't yourself."

Looking down at her hands she kept her gaze averted as she spoke.

"I was back in Somalia, or at least I thought I was. Remember the Landbay mission?"

He wished he could forget that disaster of an operation. Half his team was put out of commission for a month, he was captured and held for two days before he escaped and she had to fight her way back to their side of the lines alone with nothing but healthy coat of mud for camouflage and the knife she still carried with her, the one she had used against him.

Resting his hand on her shoulder he squeezed it.

"You did what you thought you had to do."

It wasn't the most comforting sentence in the world but anything else would have sounded insincere coming from him. She would dwell on the past a little while longer but he knew she would recover, she always did. Satisfied his Lieutenant would make a full recovery Taylor glanced around the clinic, Dr. Shannon was busy looking over another patient and the rest of the medical staff were occupied with their own work. Leaning down he shared a mischievous look with Wash as he stage whispered,

"Let's get out of here."

They didn't sneak out of the clinic as much as they strolled out at a leisurely pace. As they walked down the street Taylor handed her something heavy wrapped in cloth. It was her knife. With an almost fond smile she tucked it into its case on her belt.

"When you're feeling up to it I'd like a rematch."

She looked over at him with a raised eyebrow.

"My memory may be hazy but I'm pretty sure you won our little fight."

"Yea but you came close to winning. That's a good enough reason in my book."

She rolled her eyes in response, Taylor took that as a yes.


End file.
